The availability of online voter registration has widely increased over the last several years. For the 2008 elections, only two states, Arizona and Washington, offered online registration. By early 2014, 15 states offered full online registration, five offered partial online registration and five had passed legislation authorizing online registration.<ref>[http://www.ncsl.org/legislatures-elections/elections/electronic-or-online-voter-registration.aspx ''National Conference of State Legislatures'' "Online Voter Registration," accessed February 20, 2014]</ref>

The availability of online voter registration has widely increased over the last several years. For the 2008 elections, only two states, Arizona and Washington, offered online registration. By early 2014, 15 states offered full online registration, five offered partial online registration and five had passed legislation authorizing online registration.<ref>[http://www.ncsl.org/legislatures-elections/elections/electronic-or-online-voter-registration.aspx ''National Conference of State Legislatures'' "Online Voter Registration," accessed February 20, 2014]</ref>

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In a time of disagreement between the parties on numerous aspects of election law, online voter registration has supporters on both sides of the aisle. “It’s red states, blue states, small states, big states. It’s happening across the board,” said Jennie Bowser, an elections expert at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Proponents of online voter registration advocate it as a convenient, simplified and more reliable approach that brings more people into the voting process, while at the same time saving money for tax payers and cash-strapped governments. For example, the online process can reduce problems common in paper registration, such as incomplete forms and errors made when officials must decipher handwritten information. Online systems that allow users to update existing records after a move also prevent polling place delays and overuse of provisional ballots. Cost savings accumulate from the simplified registration processing, the lack of printing and postage expenses, and the reduction of personnel costs for data entry. A study of Arizona's online registration system shows that processing a paper registration costs 83 cents, while an online registration costs as little as 3 cents. Maricopa County, Arizona saved $1.4 million in processing expenses between 2008 and 2013 due to the online system.<ref>[http://www.politico.com/story/2013/04/online-voting-states-89503.html#ixzz2QHyqbCzF ''Politico'' "States vote yes to online registration," accessed April 12, 2013]</ref><ref name=ProjectVote>[http://projectvote.org/images/publications/Online%20Voter%20Registration/Policy-Paper-Online-Registration-May-2013.pdf ''Project Vote'' "Online Voter Registration, 2013"]</ref><ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-p-mcdonald/who-registers-to-vote-onl_b_3179432.html ''The Huffington Post'' "Michael McDonald: Who Registers to Vote Online?" April 29, 2013]</ref>

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In a time of disagreement between the parties on numerous aspects of election law, online voter registration has supporters on both sides of the aisle. “It’s red states, blue states, small states, big states. It’s happening across the board,” said Jennie Bowser, an elections expert at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Proponents of online voter registration advocate it as a convenient, simplified and more reliable approach that brings more people into the voting process, while at the same time saving money for tax payers and cash-strapped governments. For example, the online process can reduce problems common in paper registration, such as incomplete forms and errors made when officials must decipher handwritten information. Online systems that allow users to update existing records after a move also prevent polling place delays and overuse of provisional ballots. Cost savings accumulate from the simplified registration processing, the lack of printing and postage expenses, and the reduction of personnel costs for data entry. A study of Arizona's online registration system shows that processing a paper registration costs 83 cents, while an online registration costs as little as 3 cents. Maricopa County, Arizona saved $1.4 million in processing expenses between 2008 and 2013 due to the online system.<ref>[http://www.politico.com/story/2013/04/online-voting-states-89503.html#ixzz2QHyqbCzF ''Politico'', "States vote yes to online registration," accessed April 12, 2013]</ref><ref name=ProjectVote>[http://projectvote.org/images/publications/Online%20Voter%20Registration/Policy-Paper-Online-Registration-May-2013.pdf ''Project Vote'' "Online Voter Registration, 2013"]</ref><ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-p-mcdonald/who-registers-to-vote-onl_b_3179432.html ''The Huffington Post'' "Michael McDonald: Who Registers to Vote Online?" April 29, 2013]</ref>

Online registration has proven to be an effective tool to increase voter participation among young people. In Arizona, registration rates among 18 to 24 year olds rose from 29 percent to 53 percent after the introduction of online registration. A study in California estimated that of the 244,049 new youth registrants in the 2012 presidential election over 2008, 154,054 of them, or 63 percent, registered online. In Maryland, although 18-29 year olds comprised only 19 percent of registered voters in the state, they made up 42 percent of online registrants since the system became available.<ref name=ProjectVote/>

Online registration has proven to be an effective tool to increase voter participation among young people. In Arizona, registration rates among 18 to 24 year olds rose from 29 percent to 53 percent after the introduction of online registration. A study in California estimated that of the 244,049 new youth registrants in the 2012 presidential election over 2008, 154,054 of them, or 63 percent, registered online. In Maryland, although 18-29 year olds comprised only 19 percent of registered voters in the state, they made up 42 percent of online registrants since the system became available.<ref name=ProjectVote/>

Contents

This page contains online voter registration information pertaining to the 50 states, up to date for the 2014 elections.

The availability of online voter registration has widely increased over the last several years. For the 2008 elections, only two states, Arizona and Washington, offered online registration. By early 2014, 15 states offered full online registration, five offered partial online registration and five had passed legislation authorizing online registration.[1]

In a time of disagreement between the parties on numerous aspects of election law, online voter registration has supporters on both sides of the aisle. “It’s red states, blue states, small states, big states. It’s happening across the board,” said Jennie Bowser, an elections expert at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Proponents of online voter registration advocate it as a convenient, simplified and more reliable approach that brings more people into the voting process, while at the same time saving money for tax payers and cash-strapped governments. For example, the online process can reduce problems common in paper registration, such as incomplete forms and errors made when officials must decipher handwritten information. Online systems that allow users to update existing records after a move also prevent polling place delays and overuse of provisional ballots. Cost savings accumulate from the simplified registration processing, the lack of printing and postage expenses, and the reduction of personnel costs for data entry. A study of Arizona's online registration system shows that processing a paper registration costs 83 cents, while an online registration costs as little as 3 cents. Maricopa County, Arizona saved $1.4 million in processing expenses between 2008 and 2013 due to the online system.[2][3][4]

Online registration has proven to be an effective tool to increase voter participation among young people. In Arizona, registration rates among 18 to 24 year olds rose from 29 percent to 53 percent after the introduction of online registration. A study in California estimated that of the 244,049 new youth registrants in the 2012 presidential election over 2008, 154,054 of them, or 63 percent, registered online. In Maryland, although 18-29 year olds comprised only 19 percent of registered voters in the state, they made up 42 percent of online registrants since the system became available.[3]

State-by-state-breakdown

As of February 2014:

15 states currently offer full online voter registration

Five states currently offer partial online voter registration

Five states have passed authorizing legislation to implement the process

1Delaware has a fully electronic process for in person registration at the DMV. An electronic form may also be filled out online, but must be printed, signed and mailed to complete the registration.2Michigan allows voters to change their voter registration address online.3In Missouri, a person may register online, but must be able to provide a signature using a mobile device, tablet computer or touchscreen computer.4In early 2014, New Mexico began allowing voters to register online at Motor Vehicle Division offices; the state plans to allow voters to update their registrations from personal computers by mid-2015.5New York's online registration is paperless from the user's experience, but it is not fully automated. The voter fills out the online form and submits it electronically to the DMV. The DMV then attaches a digital signature, prints it out and sends it on for processing and review before the voter is added to the statewide database.6In Ohio, a registered voter can update his or her address online, but new registrations cannot be made online.

Recent news

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